Apr. 9 | Community Cinema: The Homestretch

FREE – Thursday, Apr. 9, at 7 p.m. | Preview the film and join the conversation around this look at the problem of homelessness among teens. | RESERVE SEATS HERE

Credit Community Cinema

Community Cinema, presented by the Independent Television Service (ITVS), Independent Lens, and WKAR, is excited to offer an advance screening of The Homestretch, a film by Anne de Mare and Kirsten Kelly. The Homestretch follows three remarkable homeless teens as they fight to stay in school, graduate, and build a more stable future.

The WKAR Community Cinema event takes place Thursday, Apr. 9 at 7 p.m. at WKAR in the Communication Arts and Sciences building on the Michigan State campus. The event is free, but online reservations are required.

The evening begins with a screening of an excerpt from the film and continues with conversation around the issues as they play out in our community and the resources available in mid-Michigan to address the problem of homelessness for teens. The panelists are Jennifer L. McMahon of Child and Family Charities - Gateway Youth Services; and Rose Taphouse of Families Overcoming Rough Times, a program of the Lansing School District.

This screening and conversation is a free presentation in partnership with Project 60/50 at Michigan State University.

WKAR Community Cinema takes place in the Communication Arts & Sciences Media Auditorium (Room 145), 404 Wilson Road on the campus of Michigan State University. Parking is free (after 6 p.m.) in the Trowbridge Road parking ramp, near the South, Main Lobby.

More About 'The Homestretch'

The Homestretch follows three remarkable homeless teens as they fight to stay in school, graduate, and build a more stable future. Each of these smart, resilient teenagers – Roque, Kasey, and Anthony – challenge stereotypes of homelessness as they work to complete their education while coping with the trauma of being alone and abandoned at an early age.

Through haunting images, intimate scenes, and first-person narratives, these teens take us on their journeys of struggle and triumph. As their stories unfold, the film explores their plights within the larger issues of poverty, race, juvenile justice, immigration, foster care, and LGBTQ rights.

The Homestretch is part of American Graduate: Let’s Make It Happen, a public media initiative supported by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to help local communities across America address the high school dropout crisis. A co-production of Spargel Productions and Kartemquin Films.

On the Air

The Homestretch airs on Monday, April 13, 2015 at 10 p.m. (check local listings) on WKAR and PBS.